Wachtel



March 24, 1964 E. WACHTEL COLLAR STAY FOR SHIRTS Filed May 1, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. ELEANOR WACHTELL fil BY 8 Arfokwy COLLAR STAY FOR SHIRTS Filed May 1. 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 2a"

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COLLAR STAY FOR SHIRTS Filed May 1. 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 III 1 Hi 52 I i 1 I 48 1 30 'I l I i r -V| L I 56 E I I I I I Is I I I I i 1 1 E I, l l I W I I I I I I i l I l I i I I I l I I .719 15 I I I l I I I INVENTOR.

ELEANOR WACHTELL GG/ .719. f2

ATmP/ITY United States Patent C) 3,126,135 CQLLAR STAY FOR SHIRTS Eleanor Wachtel, Fm Roekaway, N.Y., assignor to Solomon Brothers (30., Thomasville, Ala, a firm Filed May 1, 1961, Ser. No. 106,877 1 Claim. (Cl. 223-83) This invention relates generally to shirts and more particularly to new and useful improvements in a stay for a shirt collar.

In some stays for collars with which applicant is aware, the body of the stay fits within the folds of the collar at the front but stop short of the edges of the wings, with the result that the edges of the wings have no support and tend to sag and the neckband between the edges of the wings of the collar presents a collapsed flat appearance.

Other expedients have also been used such as attaching a plastic butterfly to the front top collar button, or attaching an extra band on the inside of the collar known as the banana-band.

The aforesaid expedients, however, do not protect the collar while in a suitcase or the like when traveling or while the shirts are on display or storage on a counter. With such expedients, the collar of the bottom shirt always looks flattened and makes a very unattractive package on the counter.

It is a principal object of the present invention to obviate and avoid the foregoing objectionable features and difiiculties of the ordinary shirt collar stay by providing a shirt collar stay that supports the collar for its entire length including the Wings thereof and that holds the collar up firmly with other shirts on top of it on the counter and therefore makes a very attractive package and good eye appeal to the consumer.

Another object is to provide a shirt collar stay that encircles the entire neckband and is provided with ledges for supporting the collar and wings of the collar so as to produce a rolling effect at the top of the wings.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shirt collar stay that completely encircles the neckband portion of the shirt and is provided with a removable transparent section adapted to span the space between the wings of the collar thereby supporting the neckband at that point and affording a view of the neckband at said point.

A specific object of the invention is to provide a sectional annular band adapted to fit inside the folds of a shirt collar, with a removable section disposed between the end wings of the collar, said removable section being transparent.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claim in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a collar stay embodying one form of the invention, a shirt collar being shown in dot-dash lines.

FIG. 2 is a partial top plan View of the front of the stay.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the stay with the transparent front section removed, showing one of the flanges in raised position.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the front removable section of the stay, on an enlarged scale.

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3 of a stay embodying a modified form of band.

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 1 of a stay embodying a further modified form of the invention.

3,126,135 Patented Mar. 24, 1964:

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 2 of the stay of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 3 of the stay of FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 1 of yet another moditied form of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 3 of the form of stay of BIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a top plan view on an enlarged scale of the front removable section of the stay of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a front perspective view of a combined shirt collar stay and a shirt fold support embodying a further modification of the invention shown applied to a shirt.

FIG. 13 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 13--13 of FIG. 12.

Referring now in detail to the respective views of the drawings, in FIG. 1 there is shown a collar stay 10 embodying the preferred form of the invention. The collar stay 10 comprises a sectional body including an annular band 12 split at the front, and a curved front section 14 spanning the gap between the end edges of the band 12 and removably joined thereto at its ends. The band 12 is preferably formed of thin cardboard but may be made of plastic or any other suitable material. The curved section 14- is formed of thin transparent plastic material.

The height or width of the band 12 is slightly less than the height or Width of the ordinary collar 13 on shirts. Midway the ends of the band along the lower edge there of as viewed in FIG. 1, the material is cut away as indicated at 16 to provide clearance for a button or the like supported on the neckband of the shirt. Adjacent its end edges, the band is formed with transverse slits l8 positioned parallel to the straight edges of the end edges and slightly inwardly therefrom. At each end the slit 18 is formed with a. short extension 20* thereof extending at right angles to the slit and projecting toward the end edge of the band. These slits removably receive the ends of the front curved bendable section 14 of the stay.

The front section 14 is elongated and substantially rectangular in shape with its end slightly tapered to blunt points 22. The material of the section along one long edge, the bottom edge as viewed in FIG. 4, is cut away as indicated at 24 to form V-shaped notches 26 in the material of the section at the ends of the cut-away portion.

In accordance with the invention, the top edge 28 of the band 12 at its ends tapers slightly upwardly and is formed with a forwardly bent portion constituting a flange or ledge 30 which tapers rearwardly and gradually merges with the flat narrow top edge 23 of the band as seen in FIG. 1.

In assembling the collar stay 10, the blunt ends 22 of the body section 14 are inserted through the slits 18 and the notches 26 are interlocked with the slit extensions 20 thereby holding the ends of the section 14 in fixed position. The section 14 closes the gap between the end edges of the band 12 and being transparent permits a view of the front of the neckband portion which is therebehind.

In use, the stay 10 encircles the entire neckband of the shirt, inside the collar 13, with the ledges 3%) underneath the top of the wings of the collar of the shirt thereby forcing said wings outwardly slightly and providing a kind of a roll to the wings of the collar at the top thereof. At the same time, the front of the neckband between the ends of the collar is held forwardly in a curved condi tion thereby enhancing the appearance of the shirt. The front section 14 is readily removed when desired.

The modified form of band 12 shown in FIG. 5 differs from the band 12 of stay 10 only in the number of slits in the band for receiving the ends of the front section 14. In the band of FIG. 5, one end is formed with a plurality of spaced parallel slits 18 with right angular extensions 20 at the ends thereof, three such slits being shown. The band at its other end is formed with a single slit 18 with extension 2!). The plurality of slits 18 provide the necessary adjustment for the band to accommodate ditferent size collars.

In FIGS. 6 to 8, inclusive, another modified form of stay 10' is shown wherein the band 12," differs from the band 12 of FIG. merely in the construction and position of the slit 34. Slit 34 is cut through the end edge of the band and terminates in an extension 36 disposed at an angle to the slit. Slit 34 is disposed at an oblique angle to the end edge of the band, and slit 36 is disposed at an oblique angle to the bottom edge of the band 12.

The front section 14' is substantially the same as the front section 14 of the stay 10. In assembling the stay 10, one end of the front section 14 may be inserted in any one of the slits 18' at one end of the band and its adjacent notch 26 interlocked with the selected extension 2th. The other end of the front section 14' is then inserted through the slit 34 in the other end of the band and its adjacent notch 26 interlocked with the extension 36.

In the modified form of collar stay shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, inclusive, the band 12" is without the ledges 30 of the form of collar stay 10, but the top edge 28" tapers upwardly slightly at its ends as indicated at 38. In stay 10" also at one end of the band 12", there is a single slit 18" cut through the bottom edge 40 of the band and extending at an oblique angle toward the adjacent end edge, terminating in an angular extension At its other end, the band 12" is formed with a similar slit 18" and extension 20" but slit 18" is cut through the top edge 23". The front section 14" is similarly modified to accommodate the slits 18" and extension 20" and is accordingly provided with a notch 26" adjacent one blunt pointed end 22" along the top edge thereof as viewed in FIG. 11 and with a similar notch 26" adjacent the other blunt pointed end 22" along the bottom edge thereof. One blunt end of the body section 14" is inserted through the slit 18 cut through the bottom edge 40 with its notch 26" interlocked with the extension 20" and the other blunt end is inserted through the slit 18" cut through the top edge 28 with its notch 26" interlocked with the extension 20" thereby filling the gap between the end edges of the band 12".

Referring now to the modification of the invention shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, this modification comprises a combined shirt collar stay and shirt fold support 44, consisting of a shirt collar stay section 46 and a shirt fold support section 48. The stay section 46 is similar in construction to stay 10, including an annular sectional band 12 split at the front and a curved front section 14 spanning the gap between the end edges of the band, the ends of the section i4 being hooked to the edge walls of slits 18 adjacent the ends of the band. The top edge of the band adjacent its end edges is bent at each side of the slit forming ledges 30 The shirt fold support section 48 includes an elongated thin, flat, rectangular-shaped body 50 of cardboard or the like. At one end, the body 50 terminates in a crosspiece 52 having straight edges 54, 54. At its other end, the body terminates in a crosspiece 56 having an inner straight edge 58 and a curved outer edge 60. The rear portion of the collar stay section 46 is attached to the curved outer edge 69 midway its ends as indicated at 62. The crosspiece 56 is formed with a rectangular-shaped cutaway portion 64 disposed vertically and intersecting the lower edge of the collar stay section 46. This cut-away portion 64 provides a clearance for a shirt button and the like.-

In using the combined collar stay and shirt fold support 44, the shirt S is folded lengthwise and when thus folded is folded again once transversely of the long folds as indicated at 66 providing two folded portions. The body 50 is placed between the transverse folds with the crosspiece 52 seated against the transverse fold 66. The other crosspiece 56 is disposed behind the collar 13 and shoulders 68 of the folded shirt, as shown in FIG. 12, with the collar stay section 46 inside the collar 13 of the shirt. It will thus be seen that the body of the shirt as well as the collar thereof will be prevented from collapsing and accordingly will present a neat fresh appearance.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent A collar stay comprising a sectional body including a thin annular split band of cardboard material with straight end edges forming one section and a thin curved trapezoidal shaped piece of transparent plastic material between the ends of the band forming the other section of the body, the ends of the band having closed slits disposed parallel to the end edges of the band and inwardly of the end edges, with a plurality of slits adjacent one end edge, said slits terminating in short extensions extending at right angles to the slits and extending toward the end edges, said other section having ends with downwardly tapered blunted points and with notches along the lower long edge thereof inwardly of the blunted ends, said blunted ends insertable through the slit at one end edge and a selected slit at the other end edge and said notches interlockable with the extensions at the ends of the slits, the top long edge of said trapezoidal piece being centrally concaved downwardly to provide two upstanding end portions adjacent the upper sides of said downwardly tapered blunted points, the bottom edge of the band being cut away midway its ends to make clearance for a collar button or the like and radial tapered substantially triangular flanges along the top edge of the band at and adjacent its ends, said flanges terminating in wide straight ends aligned with the straight end edges of said flanges, said flanges lying normally in yieldable perpendicular relation to said band, the upstanding end portions of said trapezoidal piece underlying the juncture of said flanges with said band to support the inner edges of the flanges but allow the wide straight ends thereof to yield downwardly to the pressure of a shirt collar positioned thereover.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,334,068 Chadwick Nov. 9, 1943 2,495,153 Wald et al Jan. 17, 1950 2,551,879 Freedman May 8, 1951 2,655,295 Ransom Oct. 13, 1953 2,822,114 Noojin et a1. Feb. 4, 1958 3,072,306 Macrides Jan. 8, 1963 FOREIGN PATENTS 854,771 France Ian. 24, 1940 

